Trolley-head for electric tram-cars.



No. 772,638. PATENTED 00118, 1904.

. w. WILLENBUOHBR. V I

TROLLBY HEAD FOR ELECTRIC TRAM CARS.

N0 MODEL.

0 W 7 (Iii I Q 7 A .H m Y 1: 1 W, V J v fi [mentor I Wi tneses.

which facilitates itsemplacement on the conthe bracket over a small roller or pin on the tendency to support the cable and allow the Patented October 18, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

'WILHELM WILLENBI ICHER, OF MANCHESTER, ENGLAND.

vTFIOLLEY-HEAD FOR ELECTRIC TRAM-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 772,638, dated October 18, 1904.

Application fileC January 7, 1904 Todll whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILHELM WILLEN- BUCHER, a subject of the King of Prussia, Emperor of Germany, and a resident of Manchester, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Trolley-Heads for Electric Tram-Cars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to trolley-heads for electric tram-cars in which thegrooved trolley-wheel, together with a fork or the like ducting-wire, is capable of swinging around a vertical pivot.

The primary object of the invention. is to effect the raising of the fork into the opera-.7 tive position by means of the cable usually attached to the trolleypole without throwing the strain on the wheel-bearings when lowering the trolley-head.

For the purpose of my invention I attach the cable to the'forward end of the fork and pass itthrough a hole in the upper partof the wheel-bracket adjacent to the vertical wheel-pivot, and thence diagonally through trolley-socket. In the cable I arrange within the trolley-bracket a disk or similar stop, which after a limited downward pull of the cable sufiicient to raise the fork into its operative position comes in contact with the trolley-head socket, and the lowering of the .trolley-head is then effected withoutthro'wing any strain on the trolley-wheel bearings. The fork may be maintained in or returned to its Preferably, however, I arrange between the disk on the cord and the trolley-head socket a coiled spring on the cable, or otherwise so arrange or dispose a spring which has the fork to assume its horizontal position. As this spring offers a certain resistance to the downward motion, of the cable, the pressure between the trolley wheel and conductor may be eased by lightly pulling the cable when passing points or sharp curves, while the fork remains in its horizontal position.

In order that my invention may be better understood, I will more fully describe it with Serial No. 188,048. (No model.)

reference to the accompanying drawings, in wh1ch Figure 1 shows a side elevation of the improved trolley-head with the fork in its operative position; Fig. 2, an end elevation of the same; and Fig. 3, a modification of the im proved trolley-head, in which the cable is in the customary manner attach ed to the trolleypole and the fork shown in its horizontal position is raised by a separate cord connected with the cable. The fork is in this modification shown pivoted to the bearing of the trolley-wheel spindle.

, The trolley-wheela, together with the fork In Figs. 1 and 2 the cable 9 for lowering the trolley-head is attached to the forward end 6' of. the fork, the prongs of which are pivoted on the trolley-wheel axis, and is passed through a hole in the upper rib of the bracket '71 and thence diagonally across the bracket to a, pin 12 on thesocket from which it hangs down. 7 I diskh or similar stop is provided which, after a' limited downward pull of the cable during which the fork is raised, comes in contact with the trolley-head socket when the lowering of the trolley-head commences. Preferably, however, I arrange between the disk It and the socket e a coiled spring'sonthe cable, as shown in the drawings, which has the tendency to maintain the fork in its inoperative position and which offers a certain resistance to the downward motion of the cord, so that the trolley head may be eased by lightly pulling the cablewhen passing points or sharp curves while the fork remains in its inoperative position.

In Fig. 3 the cable 9 for lowering the trolley-head is attached to the pole f, and a separate cord 9" is used for working the fork in the same manner and by the means described On the cable within the bracket n a with reference to Figs. 1 and 2. The fork is in this modification shown pivoted to the bearings of the trolley-wheel spindle.

What I claim is 1. The combination with atrolley-pole, of a bracket fixed on the end of said pole, a grooved trolley wheel capable of angular motion around a vertical pivot and adapted to engage the conducting-wire, a fork the outwardlyextending prongs of which lie on either side of the wheel being pivoted intermediate their ends on the trolley-wheel axis and connected together at their forward ends and means for raising the fork by the cable for lowering the trolley-head without throwing any strain on the trolley-wheel bearings when lowering the trolley-head, substantially as described.

2. The combination with a trolley-pole, of a bracket fixed on the end of said pole, a grooved trolley-wheel capable of angular motion and adapted to engage the conducting-wire, a fork the outwardly-extending prongs of which lie on either side of the wheel being pivoted intermediate their ends and connected together at their forward ends, a cable attached to the said closed end of the fork and passed through the upper rib of the bracket and over a pin on the socket, and a stop arranged on the cable within the bracket and adapted to come in contact with the trolley-socket subsequent to the raising of the fork which is adapted to return to its inoperative position by gravity, substantially as described.

3. The combination with a trolley-pole, of a bracketfixed on the end of said pole, a grooved trolley wheel capable of angular motion around a vertical pivot and adapted to engage the conducting-wire, a fork the outwardly-extending prongs of which lie on either side of the Wheel being pivoted intermediate their ends on the trolley-wheel axis and connected together at their forward ends by a cross-bar, a cable attached to the said cross-bar and passed through a hole in the upper rib of the bracket and adjacent to the vertical wheel-pivot and thence diagonally across the bracket over. a pin on the socket, and a stop arranged on the cable within the bracket and adapted to come in contact with. the trolley-socket subsequent to the raising of the fork which is adapted to return to its inoperative position by gravity, substantially as described.

4. The combination with a trolley-pole, of a bracket fixed on the end of said pole, a grooved trolley wheel capable of angular motion around a vertical pivot and adapted to engage the conducting-wire, a fork the outwardly-er tending prongs of which lie on either side of the wheel being pivoted intermediate their ends on the trolley-wheel axis and connected together at their forward ends by a cross-bar, a cable attached to the said cross-bar and passed through a hole in the upper rib of the bracket and adjacent to the vertical wheel-pivot and thence diagonally across the bracket over a pin in the socket, a spring and a stop arranged on the cable within the bracket and adapted to compress said spring which has the tendency to support the cable and allow the fork to assume its inoperative position, substantially as described.

. 5. The combination with a trolley-pole, of a bracket fixed on the end of said pole, a grooved trolley wheel capable of angular motion around a vertical pivot and adapted to engage the cond acting-wire, a fork the outwardly-extending prongs of which lie on either side of the wheel being pivoted intermediate their ends on suitable bearings and connected together at their forward ends by a cross-bar, a cord attached to the said cross-bar and passed through a hole in the upper rib of the bracket and adjacent to the vertical wheel-pivot and thence diagonally across the bracket over a pin on the socket, a spring, a stop arranged on the cord within the bracket and adapted to compress said spring which has the tendency to support the cable and allow the fork to assume its inoperative position, and a cable attached to the trolley-pole and connected with the other end of the cord, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

W ILHELM VVILLENBUCH ER.

Witnesses:

JOHN WILLIAM THOMAS,

GEORGE WEAVER. 

